The "vibrant, excitable," blond-haired, blue-eyed little girl, who was bragging five days ago about learning how to swim, was one of the 12 people killed in the Aurora theater shooting Friday, said her great-aunt Annie Dalton.

"She loved to dress up and read and was doing well at school. She was beautiful and innocent," Dalton said of Veronica, who attended Holly Ridge Elementary School in Denver. "It's a nightmare right now."

Veronica's mother, Ashley Moser, remains in critical condition at Aurora Medical Center. The 25-year-old was shot in the neck, and doctors have been unable to remove the bullet. She also suffered a gunshot wound in the abdomen.

Moser passes in and out of consciousness, asking about her daughter, Dalton said, and does not yet know that Veronica died.

Moser, who was recently accepted to medical school, might recover with some use of her hands.

"They expect her to have some paralysis but don't know how extensive it will be," Dalton said.

Veronica was a comfort to her grandfather, who died two months ago after suffering from a terminal illness over the previous year.

Missy Franklin, Jenny Simpson, Adeline Gray and three other Colorado women could be big players at the 2016 Rio OlympicsWhen people ask Missy Franklin for her thoughts about the Summer Olympics that will begin a year from Wednesday in Rio de Janeiro, she hangs a warning label on her answer.